In this week’s edition of Five Tip Friday we share five tips that I consider ‘set it and forget it’ type options that I think you’ll want to know about🙂
For example, how to turn on your display just by lifting it, access the camera even faster than before when the device is locked, or make your device stand out when using Bluetooth by setting a custom name.
- Press power twice for fast camera access
- Wake your display by lifting the device
- Save power, stay awake, and mute using Advanced Interactions
- Give your device a name for use with Bluetooth
- Turn on Screen Pinning to have peace of mind when sharing your device
Press power twice for fast camera access
For those that have received the Android 6.0 Marshmallow update, you can now access the camera even faster without unlocking your device by pressing the power key twice.
This setting is enabled by default so make sure you try out the next time your device is locked and you need to take a picture. Should you want to turn this off however, complete the following:
- Swipe down from the top of screen once using two fingers, or twice using one finger
- Tap
> Display - Turn on, or off Press power button twice for camera
Tip: To learn more about Android 6.0 Marshmallow, check out Sweet! Android 6.0 Marshmallow Now Available on PRIV posted on Inside BlackBerry.
Wake your display by lifting the device
When you grab your device you need to turn on the display by pressing the power key, or tapping twice on the screen. PRIV offers a third way to wake your device however which is the Lift to Wake feature.
Simply put, if enabled, this setting will cause your display to wake up so you can start using your device immediately. If a screen lock is enabled, you can unlock your device without having to press the power key, or tap twice on the screen first.
- Swipe down from the top of screen once using two fingers, or twice using one finger
- Tap > Display
- Turn on Lift to Wake
Note: This option can result in higher battery usage if you are constantly waking your device by moving it frequently.
Save power, stay awake, and mute using Advanced Interactions
Three popular settings found in BlackBerry 10 can also be found on PRIV. These are the ability to save power, keep your device awake, or silence it quickly by flipping it over. To try out these motion gestures complete the following steps:
- Swipe down from the top of screen once using two fingers, or twice using one finger
- Tap > Advanced Interactions
- Optionally enable the following settings:
- Flip to mute
- If you receive a call and cannot answer, flip your device to silence the ringtone, or stop vibration. You will still receive a missed call notification so you can follow up afterwards
- Flip to save power
- Placing your device face down will place it into sleep mode to extend battery life. You will still receive notifications for incoming calls, messages and alarms.
- Hold to stay awake
- If enabled, your display stays on as long as you are holding your PRIV in your hand
- If enabled, your display stays on as long as you are holding your PRIV in your hand
Give your device a name for use with Bluetooth
When pairing with a Bluetooth device, or sharing via Bluetooth, your device has a default name associated with it, for example BlackBerry STV100-1. You can change this so it’s easier to identify your device when pairing, or sharing using the steps below:
- Swipe down from the top of screen once using two fingers, or twice using one finger
- Tap > Bluetooth
- If Bluetooth is turned off, turn it on using the switch
- Tap > Rename this device
- Enter your desired device name, i.e MyPRIV
Turn on Screen Pinning to have peace of mind when sharing your device
Do you want to lend your phone to someone, but want to limit their access to one app? Screen pinning lets you do just that by locking an app onto your screen and disabling the Recents and Back buttons preventing them from accessing other apps on your device.
In other words, this feature helps you have peace of mind since whoever is using your PRIV is restricted to a single app, and isn’t able to back out of the app, and go look at your personal data such as photos, or messages.
To try out this feature, complete the following steps;
- Swipe down from the top of screen once using two fingers, or twice using one finger
- Tap > Security > Screen Pinning
- Tap the switch
- Complete the following (I recommend leaving this feature enabled)
- If using Android 5.1, optionally disable Ask for <Password | PIN | Picture | Pattern> before unpinning
- If using Android 6.0, optionally disable Ask for unlock pattern before pinning
After completing these steps, the next time someone asks to use your browser, or any other app on your device complete the following:
- Open the app the person would like to use
- Tap Recents, and on the app you want to pin, tap
When you tap the PIN icon, the app will switch to full screen, and the status bar on your device will be hidden until the app is ‘unpinned’. When you are given your PRIV back, to leave the pinned app press the 
Back and 
Recents at the same time.
Easy peasy!
To learn about PRIV or troubleshoot an issue, there are several great options available to help. Visit http://blackberry.com/privsupport for access to product documentation, how-to demos, tips and tricks, YouTube videos, support forums, knowledge base articles, Twitter support, and contact information for your region.
